Kurt Masur, former music director of the New York Philharmonic orchestra, dies

Follow the author of this article

Kurt Masur, the German conductor who revamped the New York Philharmonic orchestra as one of its longest musical directors, has died. He was 88.

Philharmonic President Matthew VanBesien announced his death in a statement Saturday, saying "it is with the deepest sadness that I write on behalf of the Masur family and the New York Philharmonic that Kurt Masur — our inspiring Music Director, 1991-2002, and Music Director Emeritus — passed away."

Masur was the orchestra’s music director between 1991 and 2002, and injected artistic credibility into the Philharmonic after his predecessors Pierre Boule and Zubin Mehta, with his considerable knowledge of German classical music. Masur left after a power struggle with then-Executive Director Deborah Borda and was succeeded by Loren Maazel.

“I discovered that music making helped me overcome loneliness and sadness, but also brought me joy and happiness in the special moments of my life.”

Before taking the US job, Masur conducted the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra and worked with East German opera company Komische Oper. For two years, he served as the Kapellmeister, or musical director, of Leipzig’s German symphony orchestra, until 1955, before being appointed Gewandhauskapellmeister of Leipzig in 1970. He remained at the Gewandhaus, where Felix Mendelssohn had been among his predecessors, until 1996, becoming the institution’s inaugural Conductor Laureate.

Kurt Masur in 2002Credit:
AP

Masur was born in Brieg in 1927, when the town was part of Lower Silesia in Germany – it’s now known as the Polish town Brzeg – and remained loyal to the regime in East Germany until the late Eighties, winning the National Prize of East Germany in 1982.

He was a specialist in the music composed by the European giants of Beethoven, Brahms, Mendelssohn, Mahler and Bruckner.

On his website, Masur wrote that he “discovered the joy of music making” in childhood, and said that “music always made me feel at home.”

He continued: “I discovered that music making helped me overcome loneliness and sadness, but also brought me joy and happiness in the special moments of my life.”

Masur is survived by his third wife, Tomoko, a soprano from Japan; and five children, including Ken-David Masur, the San Diego Symphony's associate conductor.

The New York Philharmonic said a private funeral will be held and a public memorial is also planned.